Chapter 56.

"The time to move is now."

Admiral Kahoku drummed his fingers on the table. The room was dark, the only light seeping through coming from the windows lining the front of the shattered shop. Power had not been restored and they had not brought any generators of their own. All on purpose. All part of the plan. Where there was no power, there were no cameras. Bugs. No proof.

"We shouldn't be doing this without Hackett's knowledge."

Admiral Mikhailovich scowled, the shadows layered across his face making the expression even more unpleasant. "Command gave the order. Hackett is irrelevant. This is our operation. Besides, keeping him in the dark offers plausible deniability for the Alliance if we end up needing it."

"We're going to need it," Kahoku insisted. "Someone's going to notice. You can't move something that big and expect no one will ask questions."

Admiral Milenna tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, shoulders stiff, expression wooden. "They will ask questions. The important thing is that they don't find any answers." She shifted her gaze to Mikhailovich. "Who have you found to carry out the operation?"

The Admiral clasped his hands behind his back. "I've got a team of Corsairs assembled and waiting for our word. As soon as we give them the go ahead they'll make for the Mu Relay. All of the logistics have been arranged. It's just a matter of execution."

"And you have confidence in these men?"

"They're the best Corsairs the Alliance has to offer," Mikhailovich answered. "Lieutenant Jacob Taylor is in command. Special forces, made the N program. Technically N3. He hand-picked the rest of the team. They'll get the job done."

Author's Note:

To everyone who has read this story, thank you. For your support, for your comments…for everything. It means the world. Every bit of it. This story is everything to me.

A year and a half ago, I thought I'd try my hand at writing again. So I asked N7ZacHammer and ThaIronmann to toss me a couple of Mass Effect prompts. After playing multi with them for so long, I wanted to thank them for their time, their patience, and their friendship, and words are usually the best thing I've got to offer. So I wrote the stories, had fun with them, and to my delight they really liked them. After N7ZacHammer read his, we started chatting.

I kind of want to write an ME1 adaptation, I told him. I kind of gave it a crack a while back, but I wasn't wild about the results. I could use some help. Do you have any interest in looking at some stuff for me?

Thank God his answer was yes.

A little over a year and 250k words later, I'm the author of a novel that I'm more proud of than anything I've ever accomplished.

N7ZacHammer, I can never thank you enough. You've been there for every step, every word. When it was easy, when it was hard, and when it was downright fucking impossible. You've put up with my shitty understanding of physics, dealt with the incredible yo yo action of my ego, been patient with my slowly evolving ability to write combat, and never, ever hesitated to tell me when I needed to take another crack at something even when I thought I finally had it right. You helped me bring the world of Mass Effect to life in ways I could never have done on my own, and who this Shepard became is largely thanks to you. You are the best colleague I've ever had, and the best friend I could ever ask for. Thanks for everything. Exordium doesn't exist without you.

Guess it's on to ME2!

Mikhailovich's eyes glinted. "We'll shut them down. No loose ends."

Kahoku shifted his weight. "I sincerely hope you're not talking about murdering Alliance officers to keep this quiet."

"Only if it comes to that," Milenna answered.

Kahoku pressed his lips together.

"We're fucked if anyone finds out about this," Mikhailovich insisted. "The Alliance is fucked."

"So why are we doing it?"

"Because we need to. Shepard might be a pain in the ass, but he's right – something is coming. We need to be prepared. We need every advantage. We need that conduit."

Kahoku sighed. "Very well. Give the order."

Milenna nodded her agreement. Mikhailovich said nothing, merely turned and left.

Kahoku released a breath. "May God help us all."

"God," Milenna said, eyebrow raised, "has nothing to do with it."